Tesla Motors, which went public with much fanfare last June, nearly tripled its losses for 2010 as it invested heavily to engineer and get ready for producing the Model S, its second offering and the first that targets a broader consumer market.

With few exceptions, investors should run screaming from any stock quoted on the Pink Sheets. But not every stock being traded over the counter is a dud. In fact, some of them are top-notch global companies investors would be wise to consider. Here's a look at some of the best.

German automaker Daimler has won its appeal of a court ruling that would have required the German automaker to pay $324 million to former Daimler-Benz shareholders who claimed they weren't adequately compensated in the $36 billion merger that created DaimlerChrysler.

Daimler AG (DDAIF) is recalling about 85,000 Mercedes-Benz cars in the U.S. to adjust their power-steering systems.
The adjustment is aimed to prevent the loss of power steering fluid, The Wall Street Journal said, citing a statement on the website of U.S. traffic authority NHTSA.

Seeking to boost sales of Lexus brand vehicles, Toyota plans to offer rebates of up to $3,000, as well as subsidized financing on certain models, company executives told a gathering of Lexus dealers from across the country this week.

Toyota is allegedly in talks to supply technology and key components for hybrid vehicles to Germany's Daimler, according to a report Thursday in the Nikkei Business Daily newspaper. If a deal is made, Daimler would become fourth automaker to use Toyota's gas-electric hybrid technology.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it illegal for companies to pay foreign officials to get or retain business, and the U.S. government has been stepping up FCPA enforcement actions: More than three times as many FCPA cases were brought in 2009 than were filed in 2005.

The German auto maker has struggled to be profitable in the small-car segment recently, so it's attracted by Renault-Nissan's success in this area. Here's hoping Daimler's new tie-up works better than its previous one with Chrysler.

Once icons of American industrial might, GM and Chrysler have cut jobs, closed plants, eliminated models and shed storied brands. Racing to turn business around, both companies still have a long way to go to convince consumers their products are worthy of consideration.